Some stories are difficult to tell. Others can feel impossible.

For Women’s Bean Project participants, sharing their stories can carry an even heavier weight. Whether interviewing for a job, advocating for policy change, sharing a personal story, or appearing on national television, vulnerability is often part of the equation. That’s why the Women’s Bean Project partnered with the Denver Center for the Performing Arts to bring theatre-based communication coaching to the women in its program.

“We hire women who face chronic barriers to employment,” explained Shelby Mattingly, CEO of Women’s Bean Project. “One of the many things they’re building while they’re here is confidence in themselves and their abilities.”

Founded in 1989, Women’s Bean Project provides paid employment, education, and wrap-around support services for women navigating challenges from addiction recovery and housing instability to domestic violence and justice involvement.

As participants prepare for job interviews, advocate for policy change or share their experiences publicly, confidence becomes just as important as technical skills. “We realized we could support that work through theatre-based tools and storytelling,” shared Rick Mireles, Director of Community Engagement.

Over the past year, the partnership has helped participants strengthen job interview skills, prepare for public speaking opportunities, and practice telling their stories with confidence.

One of those stories belongs to Jen.

Before appearing on “The Kelly Clarkson Show,” Jen had spent years battling drug addiction and recently served 74 days in jail. “Sitting there, I realized I needed to change something,” Jen shared during her appearance on the show.

After entering Women’s Bean Project, based on a recommendation from her probation officer, she began rebuilding her life. During the program, she was diagnosed with stage-two cervical cancer. “If I wouldn’t have gotten sober and worked at Women’s Bean Project, I probably would’ve never caught it,” she said.

Today, Jen is cancer-free, sober and working as a peer support specialist, helping others navigate challenges like the ones she’s overcome.

> Read Jen’s full story here

As Jen prepared to share her story on national television, DCPA teaching artists helped her organize, practice, and present it with confidence. “She had to talk about her own experiences, including her challenges with sobriety, justice involvement, and her health,” Mattingly recalled. “The DCPA gave her foundational preparation.”

According to Mattingly, telling her story on national television wasn’t nearly as challenging as telling her own daughters. “I checked in with Jen several times before we went on the show to make sure she was comfortable sharing her story on a national scale,” Mattingly explained. “She responded with ‘the hardest conversation I ever had to have about any of this was with my children.’”

For the Women’s Bean Project and the DCPA, the goal was never simply to create stronger public speakers. It was to help women recognize the value of their own voices. In New York, Jen’s children sat in the audience and watched their mother share her story with confidence and pride.

As her daughter reflected at the 2026 Women’s Bean Project annual graduation celebration, “We are incredibly thankful to the Women’s Bean Project for reminding my mom of her worthiness to have an extraordinary life.”

For Mattingly, that moment captured the true power of storytelling.

“If people leave the Bean Project able to tell their story in the way that they want, with confidence and pride, that’s a tremendously huge gift,” she shared.

While Jen’s story is one example, it reflects a broader goal shared by both organizations: to help women recognize the value of their experiences and find the confidence to use their voices.

Because sometimes the most important story a person learns to tell is their own.

The Denver Center for the Performing Arts (DCPA) NewsCenter is the organization’s editorial platform for stories, announcements, interviews, and coverage of theatre and cultural programming in Colorado. We are committed to producing accurate, trustworthy, clearly sourced journalism that reflects our mission and serves our community.